


Love Scenario

by queenbyun



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Erwin is a playboy, Friends With Benefits, Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, M/M, Miscommunication, Smut, figure skating AU, they break each others hearts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-25
Updated: 2018-02-25
Packaged: 2019-03-22 00:33:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13752474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenbyun/pseuds/queenbyun
Summary: Levi held Erwin on a pedestal, as this figure skating idol he admired fiercely. Perhaps that was wrong of him, but he's seen Erwin fail on jumps, cry when he loses, and get angry at himself when he falls—he knows Erwin's not perfect, that he's a real human with flaws. But if this is what Erwin is truly like, using his looks and fame to seduce men and women alike only to discard them once he's tired of them, Levi's not sure he can love someone like that.





	Love Scenario

**Author's Note:**

> I'm back!! I was inspired to write this fic after watching the men's singles figure skating in the Olympics. I ended up doing so much research about figure skating that it seemed like a waste not to write a fic on it. Erwin and Levi are so graceful and powerful in their 3DMG, it only makes sense that they're beautiful on the ice too, don't you think? 
> 
> On another note, the timeline of this fic follows the end of the 16-17 season up to the 2018 Olympics. Everything in this fic regarding figure skating should be accurate, but please correct me if I'm wrong! All figure skating terminology will be in the end notes of each chapter.
> 
> Without further ado, enjoy!

Figure skating, to Levi, is many things. It is the relentless ache in his muscles, the scrapes on his elbows, and the dull throbbing of his toes in his skates. It is the black hole that eats up all of his time, the merciless demon that mocks him when he falls. Simply put, it is heartbreak.

It is also the smooth, parallel lines carved out behind him as he skates, the fire in his heart as he dances across the ice. Sharp. Clean. That is what Levi loves. 

What he loves most, though, is jumping. Because if he goes fast enough, high enough, he could imagine that he is flying. Free. That is what Levi lives for.

.

.

.

Levi possessed a fiery spirit, even as a child. Always fussy, he refused to eat his vegetables with a terrifying obstinance, and his face darkened whenever his favorite bear was taken from him. He ran about, getting into trouble everywhere relentlessly, unheeding to anything or anyone. It was a foreshadow to the stubborn brat he would become, according to his uncle Kenny. And no one really disagreed with him. 

Contrary to popular belief, mothers are not made of steel, and Kuchel was no different. As much as she loved her little boy with his chubby cheeks and startling gray eyes, she could not handle Levi’s boundless energy. And so, twice a week, she would take him to the local ice skating rink for lessons. Somewhere to spend all that energy, she would explain. 

In the first wobbly glides he took on the ice in his tiny skating shoes, Levi was completely enamoured. He reached down to pat the surface cautiously, in wonder of the slick ice beneath him. How fun, he marveled, to slide around on this shiny surface. It was like slipping down the hall in fuzzy socks, but the rink was much, much bigger than any surface of hardwood floor at home. While the other bumbling toddlers stood on the ice with the flailing limbs of a newborn deer, Levi alone dashed across the ice. He face planted right away, of course, but the unfazed boy got back on his feet in seconds and was on the go once again. Levi, with excitement thumping in his little chest, was fearless.

From there, his love for the sport only grew as the hours he spent at the rink stretched longer and longer. It became evident very quickly that Levi had an innate talent for skating. He glided across the ice in effortless strokes of his legs with far more poise and finesse than his peers. Like he was born to do it. The coaches gushed endlessly about having a prodigy on their hands. But Levi doesn’t care about any of that. He just loved being on the ice, and it was as simple as that. Skating just felt  _ right _ , and there was no place in the world he’d rather be. 

Levi was four, and he fell in love for the first time. 

.

 

It happened in the locker room after a grueling day of practice. His toes are throbbing and he grimaced as he pulled off his skates. He’s busy assessing the damage when Isabel, a fellow rink mate a year younger than him, slapped him on the back in uncontained excitement.

“Look, Levi!” she all but shouted, and Levi’s eyes followed the line of her pointed finger to the TV hung on the wall. The channel was tuned to the Junior Grand Prix Finals. On the screen, a lithe figure with a head of golden hair danced across the ice. “That’s Erwin Smith,” Isabel whispered in awe, eyes glued to the TV, “he’s only fifteen, but people are saying he’s one to watch for in the senior division next year. He broke the world record score for the short program in the junior division last year and he hasn’t stopped since.” 

As if to punctuate her point, on-screen Erwin snapped into a glorious jump and landed gracefully with hooded eyes and a knowing smile. Levi’s fingers stilled on the laces of his skates. A quadruple flip. Quads were supposed to be physically impossible, and yet it is now the most vyed for move known to figure skating. Levi had only begun attempting doubles last week. But that wasn’t why Levi was  left mesmerized. Both he and Isabel held their breaths as they watched Erwin dance on the ice with an ease that made it seem like he was playing with the music. He raised his arms in an ethereal port de bra before seamlessly jumping into a spin combination. The way Erwin moved was fluid, effortless, like liquid gold. He’s a bit more built than most male figure skaters, which undoubtedly gave him the power to do insane jumps, but he possessed this charm, this delicacy, that entranced Levi. Erwin positively shined. 

This, this is what beauty truly is, in its purest form. 

Neither Levi nor Isabel said a word until his program was over, and Erwin was taking bows in the center of the rink while being showered by roses and other gifts. “Wow,” Isabel breathed, sitting back on the heel of her palms, “It’s no wonder they call him the Ice Prince, huh?” Levi only nodded curtly, unwilling to show just how much he agreed. Undeterred by his lukewarm response, Isabel sighed wistfully, “not only is he talented, but he’s so handsome, too. Wouldn’t it be nice to meet him someday?” 

“I’m not going to just meet him,” Levi blurted out. Isabel looked at him with wide eyes, surprised by his outburst. Levi refused to blush. “I’m not,” he mumbled as he wiped the blade of one of his skates vigorously, “I’m going to compete against him. I’m going to skate on the same ice as him.” 

Isabel’s face crinkled into a smile. “Of course you are, Levi!” she slapped him on the back again, only marginally lighter than last time. Levi’s back stung, but he was already fantasizing about the day he meets Erwin on the ice, in the way only a child can. Every jump and spin Levi did from that day on, he did it to bring himself closer to Erwin. 

Levi was ten, and he fell in love yet again. 

.

 

If Erwin was the Ice Prince as a teenager, then he was simply a Legend in adulthood. He won gold multiple times at any competition worth knowing: the Grand Prix, World Championships, Four Continents, and of course, the Olympics. Naturally, the world records in the short program, the free program, and the combined total were all his as well. He was, without a doubt, the reigning king of figure skating.

Of course, he’d grown into his good looks, too. His thick eyebrows and icy blue eyes captivated the audience, even those sitting far away, while the bright lights glinted off his sharp cheekbones. His gorgeous face sat on top of a thick neck and broad shoulders, rare for a figure skater, but his tapering waist and long legs was more alluring than any other skater. Girls all over the world went wild over him, but Levi didn’t blame them, because he was the same. No matter the time or place, no matter how tiring practice was, Levi would plant himself in front of the TV and watch intently whenever Erwin competed. 

“You came all the way to Japan to train with me,” Hanji, his coach, complained, “Don’t you think you should get off your ass and use this time to practice?” Levi promptly threw a pillow in her direction to shut her up, eyes never leaving the screen. 

“The Junior World Championships are coming up soon,” Hanji mumbled as she maneuvered the pillow behind her so she could settle in to watch too, “You really should be a little more concerned about your own skating.”

She had a point. Erwin had grown, and Levi had grown, too. He’s still in the junior division, but many said he had untapped potential to watch for. He’s a bit scrawny, but he’s lithe and powerful, a formidable skater in his own right. The steps flowed from him easily like water, a beautiful dance, and he knew he had a better grasp on the artistry than most of the skaters in the junior division, and probably some in the senior division, too. But he was often overly ambitious, attempting quads he couldn’t land and he lost a lot of points in competitions there. Hanji had forbidden him from doing quads before moving up to the senior division, because his developing body wasn’t ready to take on something so outrageous, or some bullshit like that. Levi got yelled at a lot for trying them but he kept doing them anyway.

Erwin landed the quad lutz in his last Junior Grand Prix, the first to be landed in competition, junior or senior division. It became his trademark, and he included it in every program of his since, with each jump’s execution getting more and more refined. If Levi didn’t start doing quads soon, how was he ever supposed to catch up to Erwin? How else would Erwin see him?

.

Levi’s spent nearly every day for the past five years with Hanji. They spent almost every minute of the day together too--from the first glides on the ice at the crack of dawn to the whispered notes Hanji gave him about his skating that day in the dark before they fell asleep. Levi could read Hanji like a book. He prided himself in knowing that Hanji’s humming in the morning as she brushed her teeth meant she dreamt about that stupid skater Moblit again, and that her drink should probably be taken from her when she started yelling about her glory days. So, he picked up on it right away that Hanji was hiding something from him. 

“What is it,” he snapped at her, in the middle of warm up. “Just spit it out. Your constipated face is fucking annoying.” 

Hanji grinned sheepishly. “I didn’t want to tell you, since finals are so close,” she said guiltily. Pulling her phone out of her back pocket, she made fast swipes across the screen. “But I guess it’s only fair that you know.” With that, she shoved her phone in Levi’s face.

Grimacing, Levi took the phone from her and looked at the screen. It was open to a news site, in the sports section. The headline:  _ Erwin Smith’s Affairs: Is the Legendary Skater a Legendary Playboy?  _

“What the fuck,” Levi deadpanned. Hanji only whimpered in apology. He scrolled down, scanning the article, only retaining bits and pieces. 

A long list of ex lovers. Marie Dawk. Mike Zacharius. Makes them fall in love with him, only to abandon them when he’s found a new toy. A playboy with a deadly charm. And, the cherry on top, an actual picture taken by the paparazzi. It’s black and white, fuzzy, but it’s definitely Erwin. It’s him, with his slicked back blond hair and high cheekbones, caught in a passionate kiss with a woman outside a hotel.  

Levi managed to hand the phone back to Hanji before he dropped it. Without a word, he skated away, returning to his warm ups. 

“Levi!” Hanji called after him, “don’t you want to talk about it?” 

“Nope!” Levi quipped, “I don’t really want to talk about him again, ever.” 

He didn’t even think about it for the rest of the day, going on about practice as if his world hadn’t just shifted drastically. It’s only when he settled into his blankets, Hanji already snoring away, that he allowed his mind to float. Just like that, Levi's rose color tinted dream was shattered

As much as he tried to convince himself that he merely admired Erwin’s skating, the ache in his chest made it painfully obvious now that he wanted the man himself too. It’s foolish, he knew, to have fallen for his idol like some preteen girl. 

He had held Erwin on a pedestal, this figure skating idol he admired fiercely. Perhaps that was wrong of him, but he'd seen Erwin fail on jumps, cry when he loses, and get angry at himself when he falls--he knew he's not perfect, that he's a real human with flaws. But if this was what Erwin is truly like, using his looks and fame to seduce men and women alike only to discard them once he's tired of them, Levi wasn’t sure he can love someone like that. 

Levi was seventeen, and he had his heart broken.

.

**Grand Prix Finals: Marseille, France**

.

Levi breathes deeply as he makes rounds around the ice, trying to let the sound of his skates scraping sharply against the ice calm him. It doesn’t work. He’s at the last day of his first Grand Prix Finals, and he’s ridiculously tense. He doesn’t have a reason to be; he had broken the world record, Erwin’s record, for the short program in the junior division last season and he placed fifth yesterday with a satisfying short program. As long as he doesn’t fuck up his free skate today, he has a good chance at the podium. 

Out of the corner of his eye, a glint of gold catches his attention, and he fights the instinct to look and skates on. In all the chaos of the first day, he didn’t see Erwin at all and had actually forgotten that Erwin would be here too. They had received different assignments prior to the Grand Prix Finals, with Levi attending the NHK Trophy and Rostelecom Cup while Erwin competed at Skate Canada and Internationaux de France. Not that Levi was keeping track of him. But of course, on the battleground where only the best of the best gather to compete, it’s only natural that he’d meet Erwin here for the very first time. 

The announcement that warm ups are now over and that the competition would begin echoes within the large arena, booming over the cheering of the crowd. Levi heads over to the exit, and Erwin slides past him. Now forced to look at him, Levi takes in his backside. He’s still as strapping as ever. How unfortunate. Levi narrows his eyes and looks away. So damn distracting. 

Levi picked the second spot to compete earlier today, so he remains by the side of the rink while the rest of the skaters go backstage. Mike, the first skater of the day, skates to the center of the rink and takes his pose. The music floods the arena, and he’s off.

Instead of watching, he bends over to stretch his legs one more time. He closes his eyes, wiping his sweaty hands on his leggings. 

_ I can do it,  _ he thinks,  _ it’s no different from any other competition, any other day on the ice. I can do it.  _

In what seem like a few moments, Mike’s done and coming off the ice. Levi hands his skate guards over to Hanji and steps onto the ice. He skates by the edges of the rink, twisting his upper body a few more times to make sure he remembers the feeling when jumping. Levi glides to the center of the rink, taking position. The cheers from the audience slowly die down as they await his performance. All eyes are on him, it’s dead silent in the arena save for the thundering of his heart, and it feels as if time has stopped. He hears the music swelling into the first note, takes a deep breath, and he skates. 

.

 

He’s fucking tired. It’s normal to be in the second half of the program, but Levi can’t seem to catch his breath. Everything had gone well so far, but there’s still a few jumps he needs to land. The one he’s really worried about is the quad salchow. He had been in the zone in the beginning, but now with his muscles trembling with exhaustion and sweat running down his neck, all he can think about is that quad salchow and how he cannot fail on it. He comes out of his sit spin and glides across the ice, building momentum for the jump. Here it comes. 

_ I can do it.  _

_ I can do it. _

_ I can’t do it. _

The moment his feet leave the ice, he’s hit with the realization that everything is terribly wrong, even as he spins four times neatly in the air. He has enough rotation, but the angle of his jump is off, and Levi knows that once he hit the surface again he wouldn't be able to land. Sure enough, when his right foot touches the ice, he hears a sickening snap and a sharp pain blooms in his ankle instantly. His leg buckles underneath him, sending him sprawling on the slick ice. The audience gasp collectively in horror, audibly loud over the music. Gritting his teeth, he tries to suppress the rising panic in his chest as he gets back up. There goes his quad. He won’t get any points for that, and it will hurt his score. Levi ignores the pain in his ankle screaming at him to stop as he skates to the center of the rink and jumps right into his flying camel spin, as if nothing happened.

By some miracle, Levi finishes the program in one piece, even though he pops the rest of the jumps following the crash--he can only fight the pain for so much and the very idea of attempting quads is unfathomable right now. He manages to bow with some semblance of grace as the crowd roars and showers him with roses. He even manages to skate all the way to the exit before he collapses into Hanji’s arms. Cameras are still on him and it’s absolutely embarrassing, but he has to be half carried to the kiss and cry. 

“Are you okay?” Hanji asks softly as she sets him on the bench. Levi shakes his head stiffly.

“It’s my ankle. I fucked it up,” he pants, heart still racing from the exertion. Hanji huffs as she sits down next to him, but her face remains blank.

“Okay,” she murmurs, passing him a towel and water bottle, “let’s just see your scores and get you to medical, alright? Everything will be fine.”

Levi swallows and nods, dabbing the towel at his sweaty hairline. He likes to think he’s strong, but in moments like this he’s grateful for Hanji’s presence. Levi shows his thorns to the world but when pressed the right way he yields like liquid gold. Hanji, however, is usually soft as water but Levi needs her, she becomes unbreakable like diamonds. 

Levi is able to calm down enough in the next few minutes, but his heart drops all over again when his score is announced.

173.46

It really isn’t a terrible score, considering how poorly he delivered his jumps in the second half. But with the top dogs like Erwin and Mike guaranteed to score well into the two hundreds, Levi doesn’t stand a chance at medalling. 

Levi doesn’t bother to stick around after that, heading straight to medical as per Hanji’s orders. The medic, a middle-aged man with a receding hairline, tends to him. He examines Levi’s ankle, holding it gently this way and that way, mumbling broken apologies in English whenever Levi hisses in pain. He places Levi’s foot down and frowns deeply. 

“It doesn’t look good,” the man says in a heavy French accent, “I can’t tell you exactly how bad it is, but your ankle is already very swollen.” 

“Yeah,” Levi grits his teeth. As if he couldn’t see that himself. He wants to rip out what little remaining hair the man has. 

“You’ll have to go to the hospital after this and get a proper x-ray, see what the damage is, _oui?_ ” The man opens the cooler set beside him and takes out an ice pack. “But for now, put ice on it. Your coach will take you to the hospital after the competition.” He hands the ice pack over to Levi. 

“Thanks,” Levi says curtly. Perhaps sensing the dark aura looming over Levi, the medic nods and moves onto the next athlete. 

Even as Levi’s icing his ankle, he pointedly ignores the TV in the corner. As his luck would have it though, he accidentally glances at the screen as it’s showing the final ranking. Levi doesn’t see the exact number, but he sees enough to know that Erwin’s won gold and he’s placed nowhere near the top. He curses under his breath, trying not to be angry at himself but failing terribly. 

It’s hard not to be disappointed. As an up and coming rookie at his senior debut,  he knows all eyes are on him to see if he can be as impressive in the senior division as he was in the junior. Based on today’s performance, at his first international competition, of all things, Levi can only imagine the things people are saying about him. What a letdown. Is he really the one who broke Erwin’s record? 

Levi thinks about the months leading up to the Grand Prix Finals, all the extra hours he spent at the rink and all the blood, sweat, and tears he’s shed. Everything he has worked for culminated to a single moment, and he ruined it. Regret burns in his chest, a slow and painful ache. 

More than anything, he hates that he couldn’t show his true potential.

He’s blinking back the hot tears welling up in his eyes when he notices a figure sidling up to him. Levi turns sharply to face them and is caught off guard to see Erwin Smith standing right next to him. 

As handsome as he is up close, Erwin looks just as surprised when Levi makes eye contact with him, like he’s afraid he’s spooked off a little animal. While Levi’s mind is still racing, trying to think of what to say, Erwin flashes him a broad smile.

“Hello, my name is Erwin Smith,” he says earnestly, as if there was a single person in the entire arena who didn’t know who he was, “you’re Levi, right? The Junior Grand Prix gold medallist last year?”

Levi grunts to hide his shock. It’s hadn’t even occurred to him that Erwin would know who he was, especially since they’ve never met before. Now that he thinks about it though, it only makes sense that Erwin would scope out the new competition. But why the hell is he talking to Levi? 

“That would be me,” Levi manages to get out. An awkward silence hangs between them, with Erwin waiting for Levi to say more and Levi having no intention to do so. When it becomes clear to Erwin that Levi’s not going to say anything, he runs his fingers through his hair, eyes flitting to the side for a split second. If Levi didn’t know any better, he’d think Erwin is nervous. The uncertainty that flashed in his eyes is gone as quickly as it came. He grins again. 

“It’s too bad you took that awful fall today,” Erwin says, “Of course, it’s commendable that you finished your program, but that quadruple salchow of yours needs some work, if you don’t want to fall like that again.”

Levi stiffens, his eyes flickering to the gold medal hanging around Erwin’s neck. Is Erwin mocking him? He opens his mouth, ready to spit fire, but Erwin beats him to it. 

“The timing of the jump was a bit awkward, and you need more power going into it to travel further. That’s why the angle you landed on was off.”

Erwin leans in slightly, eyelids hooded. “If you want, I could watch you practice and give you some advice, privately,” he murmurs. 

Suddenly, the fog has lifted and Levi sees just why Erwin approached him, crystal clear. He sees the intent in Erwin’s eyes, the tightening of his mouth as he awaits Levi’s answer. However subtle it is, it’s definitely there. Erwin fucking Smith is flirting with him. The anger in Levi flares up again in full force. Levi just performed miserably in the competition, his ankle is fucked up and he might be out for the rest of the season, but Erwin wants to know if Levi’s down to fuck? 

“Fuck you,” Levi snarls. Erwin’s eyes widen in shock and rears his head back. “You can take your advice and shove it up your ass. Stay the fuck away from me.” 

While Erwin is still standing there, stunned, with his mouth wide open, Levi takes this opening to hop off the table and limp away, wincing at the hot pain in his ankle. He almost makes it back to the locker room when Hanji bombards him.

“Levi! I’ve been looking for you!” she shouts, “where have you been? Why aren’t you in medical?”

“I  _ was _ there, but I couldn’t stay there a second longer. Fucking suffocating.” Levi grumbles, pushing past her and walking into the locker room. He flops down on a bench and props up his foot, putting the ice back onto it. Hanji sits down next to him gingerly, looking at his foot sadly. 

“How is it?” she asks gently, “What did the medic say?”

Levi snorts. “The medic was fucking useless. We’re gonna have to go to the hospital after this to get it checked out.”

Hanji breathes out, “okay.” She grabs one of Levi’s hand, undeterred by how icy it is, and looks into Levi’s eyes. “No matter what happens, I’m proud of you. You know that, right?” She squeezes his hand.

God, what a sap. “I know, Hanji,” Levi sighs. But he does feel definitively better. “Thanks, I guess.” Hanji smiles tearily at that, because best friends understand when nothing is said at all. 

“That’s the spirit!” Hanji stands up, patting her hands on the back of her pants. “Now let’s get you to the hospital, shall we?” 

.

 

Levi sits in the backseat of the van, all the chaos in his head gets quieter and quieter as they drive further away from the arena. With a clear mind, he allows himself to think back to what had just transpired in medical.

A tiny, foolish part of him is flattered that Erwin, this Greek God, found Levi attractive enough to sleep with. He squashes that flutter in his heart harshly, like putting out a cigarette. Erwin is horrible, who gives a fuck if he wants to sleep with him. Not Levi. He thinks about the long list of people who have fallen for Erwin’s boyish charm, only to be thrown away weeks later. Levi refuses to be another notch on the totem pole. 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed the first chapter!! So, Levi just rejected Erwin right off the bat? Where do they go from there? Stay tuned for the next chapter!! Kudos and comments are greatly appreciated as always! 
> 
>  
> 
> **Figure Skating Terminology**
> 
>  
> 
> Lutz: a toepick-assisted jump with an entrance from a back outside edge and landing on the back outside edge of the opposite foot; the second most difficult jump out of six  
> Port de bra: a classical ballet term meaning “movement of the arms.” It describes how dancers move their arms from one position to another.  
> Flying camel spin: a spin position in which the free leg is extended backwards with the knee held above hip level.  
> Salchow: An edge jump that takes off from the back outside edge; the fifth most difficult jump out of six  
> Popping a jump: During a jump, when a skater prematurely abandons their tight rotational position ("opens up") in mid-air, resulting in fewer than the desired rotations.  
> Kiss and cry: The area next to the rink at major competitions where the skaters wait to get their results.


End file.
